5/10/22
 
GEORGETOWN, De. – Two times, Lackawanna College took an early 2-0 lead after the top of the first inning. Conversely, each time, the Mercer County CC Vikings had the answer, and it was something the Falcons couldn't counter. The Vikings bludgeoned Lackawanna in their two Region XIX Championship games on Tuesday afternoon in Delaware, winning 16-6 and 20-6, denying the Falcons a third straight region championship, and securing Mercer's first title since 2018.
 
Lackawanna College (24-19) came into the day with the undefeated advantage, needing to just win one of a potential two games, but the Falcons struggled to keep the Mercer offense grounded, as the Vikings (30-17) pounded out a combined 36 runs and 42 hits across both games, including twelve extra base knocks.
 
Game One Recap: Mercer County CC 16 – 6 Lackawanna College
Lackawanna College scored two runs in the top of the first inning to grab some momentum, only for Mercer to immediately take the lead with eleven runs over the first five innings, forcing the Falcons to constantly play catch-up in a 16-6 loss for Lackawanna in game one of the Region XIX Championship series in Delaware on Tuesday afternoon.
 
The Falcons (24-18) took the early lead in the top of the first, thanks to an Eli Riley RBI double that made it 2-0, only for the Vikings (29-17) to score a pair of runs in the bottom of the first to tie it up, then hit a three-run homer in the second to take the lead. From there, the Falcons would tie in the third, but the Vikings put up three runs in the fourth and fifth innings to extend lead out to 11-6, a deficit the Falcons wouldn't be able to recover from.
 
Lackawanna College was led by Riley, who went 3-for-4 with three RBI, and got two hits apiece from Cody Fleischer and George Castro on the day. Cameron King got the start, but only got through two innings of work, giving up five runs on six hits. Jason Carpenter was tagged with the loss, pitching a pair of innings in relief, giving up three runs on four hits, while striking out four.
 
Things got started in the top of the first inning, when Fleischer hit a one-out single to climb aboard. With two down and Fleischer still on first, Castro singled, and was followed by Riley, who slapped a ball that got caught up by the wind, giving the outfield some trouble, and dropping for a double, scoring both Fleischer and Castro to put the Falcons up 2-0. In the bottom of the first, a one-out walk, followed by a steal and a passed ball, put a runner on third. An RBI single brought the runner home, and two more singles loaded the bases, still with just one out. Another RBI single tied things up at two apiece, but a big 1-6-3 double play ended the inning before more damage could be done.
 
More runs came from the Vikings in the bottom of the second, when a walk and a single put two on with two out. Enter Josearmando Diaz, who cranked a three-run homer over the fence, sending the Mercer crowd into a frenzy and giving the Vikings the 5-2 lead.
 
Lackawanna College answered back in the top of the third. A Zachary Walsh double led the inning off, and Fleischer had what looked to be a sure-fire double to right field, before the right fielder made a jumping catch to snag the ball before it hit the wall. Walsh advanced to third, and, after a pair of walks, the bases were loaded with just the one out. Riley singled to bring Walsh home, and a two-run fielder's choice from Daniel Keenan brought home Castro and Quinn Hanafin, making it 5-all, after the top half of the third.
 
Jason Carpenter came on in the bottom of the third, and pitched around a single with a pair of strikeouts to get to the fourth, but the Falcons came up empty in the top frame. Mercer took advantage in the bottom half. A leadoff single put a runner on, and a passed ball put that runner in scoring position. A one-out RBI single made it 6-5, Vikings, and an error allowed another run to come home. An RBI single followed to make it 8-5, before Carpenter got a pair of strikeouts, his second stranding the bases loaded.
 
Fleischer led the fifth off with a double, and reached third on a fielder's choice. A Castro single brought Fleischer home to make it 8-6, and the Falcons had two on with two outs, but a ground out ended the scoring threat before the Falcons could try to even the score again. Once again, Mercer made Lackawanna pay. With Derrick Newman on to start the bottom of the fifth, a leadoff walk was almost negated, when Newman got a pair of ground outs. Another walk put two on, but back-to-back doubles scored three runs, blowing the game open at 11-6. Another walk loaded the bases, before Newman induced a fly out to end the inning.  
 
Things were quiet for both teams in the sixth, and the Falcons had something brewing in the top of the seventh with a pair of baserunners, but they couldn't push anything across. Mercer touched up Marc DeNunzio for one run in the bottom frame, thanks to back-to-back two-out singles to make it 12-6, Vikings.  
 
Lackawanna College couldn't get anything going in the top of the eighth, and the Vikings extended the lead further in the bottom frame. With DeNunzio still on the mound, a leadoff double, followed by a steal, put immediate pressure on the Falcon defense. A one-out RBI double scored the runner, followed by a one-run single and a two-run homerun, pushing the Mercer lead to double-digits at 16-6.
 
The Falcons went quietly in the top of the ninth, as Mercer retired Lackawanna in order to secure game one, and force a second game in the championship series.  
 
Game Two Recap: Mercer County 20 – 6 Lackawanna College


Game one was less of an anomaly and more of a harbinger for things to come for Lackawanna College, as the Vikings from Mercer put up 24 hits on their way to an overwhelming 20-6 victory in game two of the Region XIX Championship series on Tuesday afternoon in Delaware. The Vikings secured their first region championship since 2018, denying the Falcons their third straight region title.   
 
Lackawanna College (24-19) took a 4-0 lead into the bottom of the fourth inning, but Mercer (30-17) exploded for 12 runs in the bottom frame, flipping the game on its head and suddenly forcing the Falcon offense to do something it hadn't done all day against Mercer: Score at will.  
 
Zachary Walsh led the Falcons, going 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a walk, while Daniel Keenan and Cole Casamento each provided a pair of hits. Keon Burkholder was saddled with the loss, coming on in relief of Aiden Starn, but lasting just 0.2 innings, giving up nine runs on nine hits in that span.  
 
The first inning started brightly for the Falcons, as Walsh, followed by Quinn Hanafin, each reached on back-to-back walks. George Castro singled home Walsh to put the Falcons on top, and, even after a double play, Keenan singled home Hanafin to put Lackawanna up 2-0. The Falcons had two runners on, but a fly out stranded the runners and ended the top of the first.
 
Aiden Starn, pitching on three full days of rest, gave the Falcons a boost early, pitching around a single in the bottom frames each of the first three innings, boosting the Falcons to another pair of runs in the top of the fourth inning. A sac fly, followed by an RBI single, managed to push the Lackawanna College lead to 4-0 after the top of the fourth, but that would seemingly wake up the Viking offense.
 
The bottom frame started with a walk, and was followed by a single to put two on. Jarett May got Mercer on the board with a three-run homer, cutting the lead to 4-3 and chasing Starn from the game. Burkholder stepped in, also pitching on three days' rest, and the first batter reached on an error on the infield.  An RBI single tied the game up at four, still with nobody out, and things kept unraveling. With runners on second and third, and still with nobody out, a two-run single made it 6-4, giving the Vikings their first lead, and Xavier Delgado blew things open with a two-run homerun to push it to 8-4. A pair of singles brought another run home, and a fielder's choice finally got the first out of the bottom frame. A strikeout put two away, but a big two-run double pushed the lead further, and another double made it 12-4, Vikings. Samuel Daniels stepped in for Burkholder, and got a ground out to finally end the inning.
 
Lackawanna tried to get back into it in the top of the fifth. A one-out single, followed by a walk, put two on. A fly out put two away, but a failed pick-off attempt at second allowed a run to come home and make it 12-5. A walk put runners on the corners, but a fly out to right field stranded the runners.  
 
Mercer added more in the bottom of the fifth. A one-out walk, followed by back-to-back singles, made it 13-5, Vikings. An errant throw on a stolen base attempt brought another run home, and an RBI single pushed the lead to double-digits at 15-5. Later, a sac fly with the bases loaded brought one run home, and an RBI single extended the lead to 17-5, Vikings, after five.  
 
The Falcons could only muster a run in the top of the sixth, when Walsh came around to score after a leadoff single, thanks to a pair of errors on the infield. Lackawanna had two on with one out, but a caught stealing at second took the wind out of their sails, and a strikeout ended the top frame.
 
Mercer put two more runs on the board on the bottom of the sixth, thanks to a one-run double and a ground out on the infield, making it 19-6 after six innings. They'd add one more in the bottom of the seventh, thanks to a passed ball with a runner on third, making it 20-6.  
 
The Falcons had a pair of runners on in the eighth, but couldn't get anything going. Mercer had the bases loaded with two down in the bottom frame, but Daniels got a strikeout to strand the bases loaded. Down to their last out, the Falcons had the bases loaded, but a strikeout ended the game, and the Falcons' season, handing the Region XIX championship to Mercer County.  
 
The Vikings advance to play SUNY Ulster on Friday afternoon in the East District Championship Tournament. Lackawanna College's season ends at 24-19, the third time in four years that the Falcons have won 20+ games under coach Mike McCarry.